Is there a mathematical formula to determine how much XP is needed per level?

Is there a mathematical formula to determine how much XP is needed per level? In other words Is there a consistent formula for determining how much XP is needed to go up to any given level?

I originally thought it was the previous amount times 2, but that doesn't work for all levels.

I understand that there is a character advancement table, but I'm curious as to how they got those numbers and whether there is some mathematical formula to work it out.

1 Answer
1

WOTC has stated that the advancement rate is not constant across all levels. Rather, according to Unearthed Arcana: Three-Pillar Experience (August 2017), the standard XP and leveling system presented in the PHB

has faster advancement in a few spots [than the variant rules proposed in the UA.]

Note that although the quote comes from a UA playtest article, the quote itself is not playtest material -- it's the designers' commentary comparing the playtest material to the standard PHB rules.

And indeed if you look at the XP values required to advance from level to level, you won't be able to work out a straightforward mathematical formula for them, such as simple linearity or even exponentiality.

And the reasoning behind that less-than-straightforward system is clear: the designers wanted to make it faster to reach certain levels. For example, per Mike Mearls, the designers found through research that campaigns tend to stall at level 10, so they shortened the advancement track from 10 to 11.

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